RPlog:White Death Dies
With a shudder, the corvette is yanked out of what was supposed to be a much longer hyperspace jump, and almost immediately reverberates with an explosion, after which main power is knocked out, leaving the Corvette in darkness for the second or two that it takes for emergency power to kick in, leaving the amber emergency lights as the only illumination. Soon, alarm Klaxons are sounding across the CSAV Emendation, and it's speakers erupt.."All hands to battle stations. Force Litigator, report to the Hangar Bay..." With another lurch, the starship is pounded again..."All hand, prepare to repel boarders." Jim was having a pleasent conversation with another officer when the hyperspace jump abruptly ended. By instinct Jim's hands are on his blaster rifle even before emergency power kicks in. As the lights kick back on Jim begins the run down to the main hanger. As he passes men in his squad he lets out a gruff,"Let's move." and continues down. As Jim arrives in the hanger bay he does a quick last minute check over his rifle and pistols, making sure nothing would jam up and stop him from a proper kill. Xar'on slams into the bulkhead near the turbolift doors, swearing loudly, and dropping a box of supplies on the floor. He steadies himself and turns his head from side to side, glaring. He finds a comm panel nearby and makes his way for it, yelling at a nearby crewman, "What the hell was that?!" With no power to weapons, and the docking clamps locked into place on the single starfighter in the hangar bay, the Marauder is a sitting duck to it's attackers, though, it would appear, that they are looking to take it intact, and as such, the rest of the crew is also making their way to their battlestations, though the crewman that Xar'on yells at stops for a moment..."We're under attack! You'd best be prepared for casualties....they'll likely start coming in from the Hangar Bay." Gren comes jogging into the Hangar Bay, dressed in his civvies, looking more like a battered freighter pilot than a Captain. "You two, get those clampp=s off of Chir'daki!." This is barked at a pair of worried looking techs, who run off to try and do just that, leaving the ESPO officer to turn toward Jim, and his squad. "We've got multiple boarding shuttles inbound, Sergeant. We stop them here, and if need be, will dispatch teams to any other boarding points...the bastards dragged an asteroid into our flight path...they knew we were coming." Jim nods to the captain,"Yes, sir. They won't make it any further in." Jim then turns his head to his face his squad,"The captain says we don't let anyone get past this point. That means we are gonna set up in defensive positions and blast the hell of anyone who tries to board. Get into position men." Jim gives a few more individual instructions to specific people before he allows them to scatter to positions. Jim then makes his own way over to take cover behind a cargo box that he makes sure isn't full of anything that might explode. Xar'on scowls in disbelief at the crewman's back. "Yer tryin' to tell me we're bein' boarded?" he asks, to nobody in particular, as everyone around him scrambles into position. He reaches the comm panel and calls up the bridge to ask about casualties as he rifles through his bag, ensuring medical supplies are ready. "We've got a few dead, up here, Doctor...but we've locked her up tight..." That's the Bridge's terse reply, as the sound of firefighting equipment can be heard over the channel, fuzzy, from the lowered power consumption. As the pair of techs try and fight with the clamps over Chir'daki, the first visible enemy of the attack arrives, a battered assault shuttle that looks like it's held together by chicken-wire lands in the bay, and flips around, so that's ramp is facing the bay, and with a crash, it's dropped to the deck, allowing a view of atleast twenty pirates who begins firing as they disgorge. "Son of a bitch..." That's all that Gren gets out, before the pistol is pulled from his right hip, and leveled toward the open shuttle, firing off a shot, before running toward cover behind the same crate as Jim. "There'll be more, Sergeant...no one just uses one shuttle." Blaster fire erupts in the bay, and already an ESPO is hit in the gut, causing to fall back, and begin screaming. The Sergeant raises his rifle to his shoulder and takes a second to aim into the pirates deboarding the shuttle. Jim holds his breath as he pulls the trigger and a blast of energy flies at the pirate crowd. Jim then addresses the Captain,"True, sir. Luckily, that just means more pirates to kill." Jim then lets out a yell,"Let them have it boys! Fire away!" Those first few seconds of combat went well for the ESPOs, as the only casualty was the poor fellow that was hit in the gut, and who is screaming, across an open deck from Xar'on, though he is behind his own cover, a control terminal. The shuttle has emptied itself, and flies free of the bay as soon as it's empty, though the defenders aren't lucky, as a freighter can be seen heading for the bay's entrance. Gren laughs happily, as he sees his first target fall, a decidely melty hole in his chest, before reaching down, and yanking his left M434 out, leveling it alongside the pistol in his right hand, firing them both into the crowd of pirates that is dispersing, as they each try to find cover of their own. Along with Jim's kill, and a few others, there are already five dead pirates on the deck. The blaster rifle in Jim's arms continues to roar to life every few seconds as he lines up and takes his shots. Unlike his captain, Jim doesn't show any emotion on his face. He has an almsot stoic look as he deals out death or at least attempts to with each shot. He pipes up every so often to keep his men on track,"Put fire on the pirate behind the left console. Don' Xar'on locates the wounded ESPO and dashes out from his cover...as well as a 55-year old man can. His focus is entirely on the wounded man, and though he makes an attempt at staying low, it does little good as he's caught by a blaster bolt halfway to the ESPO and is sent sprawling. He still manages to hold onto his bag, and incredibly continues to crawl toward the wounded man, groaning and cursing with each movement. Those last few seconds of the battle continue going well for the ESPOs, save for the Doctor that was sent sprawling, with the defenders firing accurately, and knocking down another eight of the pirates, including the two that Jim and Gren both shot down. The cries and groans of wounded boarders can be heard coming from the carnage on the deck, though, a number are killed by crushing as a disc-shaped YT-1300 settles into the bay, and begins unloading yet more pirates to join the six or so that are left from the original attack. A smattering of fire comes from the remainder of the initial attack, but the newcomers aren't coming fast enough to fire themselves... Gren bites off a curse, as he misses one of his two shots, though, he's feeling the rush of battle, as he leans out from behind his crate, and squeezes another bolt from his pair of pistols, ignoring the red bolts that smack harmlessly around their position. "Kill these bastards, so I can take their ships!." Jim nods at the captain's request,"Those ships are as good as yours." Jim notices out of the corner of his eye that the doctor is crawling,"Men! Get some cover fire up for that man. Don't let me down and let him die!" Jim begins to fire in an attempt to hopefully take fire away from Xar-on. Xar'on is oblivious to everything but the wounded ESPO as he continues to drag his way to his own target. Nearing the downed ESPO, Xar'on flings his bag before him, raising just a bit off the ground as he does so. A blaster bolt hits him in his upper torso, skidding him across the deck. He looks to the wounded ESPO, and then to the smoldering ruin of his chest. "Aw...shi..." before going unconcious. This exchange didn't go quite so well for the ESPOs, as the pirate attackers firing got quite a bit more accurate, killing a trip of ESPOs, and knocking their brave, but ultimately too old Doctor, out of the fight. Still, three of the pirates did die, two to Gren and his dual pistols, and another to the accurate fire of Jim. Another fifteen pirates have disembarked from the freighter, and begin to lay down more fire, these the older more experienced boarders, equipped with better weapons, to boot. The Captain stands up, and jogs across the deck toward the downed Xar'on, firing a pair of blasts at the fresh pirates, even as the one-eyed pilot tries to make it to where his old CMO lies, possibly dying. He's going to have to be dragged to cover, atleast. A team of medics swarms out of the turbolift, each member diving for cover as soon as they step out the doors. A pair makes a long, circuitous route towards the CMO under cover, while the others fan out to locate other downed ESPOs. Long distance to Xar'on: Delede laughs. Gren just tripped trying to get over to you. The Sergeant's rifle continues to let off blast after blast stopping only for a few seconds as Jim slams a new pack into it and continues to let it roar. Jim watches the captain take off and yells to his men,"Remember if the captain dies then we don't get paid! Keep the heat off him." However, it appears the captain is going to need to learn to run more then he needs fire kept away from him. This latest exchange of fire really didn't go very well for the ESPOs, as another three fall, two wounded, and one missing a large part of her face. The more experienced pirates seem to be making their arrival felt, though a pair are killed by Jim, and Gren. The last of the original boarding party was just killed by the arrival of the red droid, though. Gren's a pilot, and sometimes gunfighter, he is not the most graceful sort, and it shows. The Captain was turned toward the pirates, and shouted in joy, as his first shot tore through the throat of one of the new attackers, but his second smacks into the ceiling, as he trips, and ends up on his ass, skidding across the smooth floor. Another pair of shots from his blaster pistols, though, he does spare a glance for AD-01. "About time. And, we're trying to save my ship, not wreck it, you damned bucket of bolts!." Damned merc-bots, and their destructive nature. The two medics reach the doc and the first wounded ESPO, cringing as blaster fire lands near them. As one begins tending to the CMO, Xar'on comes around for a second, smacking the medic in the face. "Nuh...help him...first...jackass..." he groans, before passing out again. Jim pulls back behind his cover as a series of blasts scar the box. After the firing has stopped Jim pops back out and fires of a few shots in the directions of his attackers. When AD-01 comes out of no where Jim actually stops for a second in suprise,"What the hell?" but then returns to squuezing off shots. Jim surveys the damage to his squad in between shots and mutters under his breath,"Damn pirates." The ESPOs actually managed to come out on top during those last few seconds of this vicious firefight, losing five dead, three to accurate fire of Jim's squad, and another to the Sergeant and Captain, respectively. AD-01 was less lucky, and it leaves him with a pissed off pirate standing just in front of him, who of course, levels his blaster pistol at the droid, and fires a blast. The ten pirates or so that remain continue to pour fire at the remaining ESPOs, of which there are five unharmed privates. But, as if out of nowhere, a bone-white X-wing squeezes into the hangar bay, it's canopy opening to reveal a pilot, with long blonde hair, and dressed in a white flight suit. He dismounts gracefully, but disappears in a flash, ducking behind his ship, and out of sight, for the moment. "We will discuss your manners, after this fight, droid." Gren snarls in return to AD-01, raising to a kneeling position, before squeezing off another shot from the M434s held in either hand, the one-eyed Captain's voice raising, as he see's the X-wing land, and it's occupant dissappear so quickly. "That's him! That's the bastard that took my eye. Take him alive!." Not that anyone's going to be getting a shot at him, right now. Gren seems to be on the verge of speaking again, but instead, he is hit in the arm, throwing him back to the deck, both of his blaster pistols flying across the floor, leaving him cursing, and reaching for the AA-8 on his back. He does appear to be out of the fight for the moment, atleast. Wanting to get a better shot, Jim darts from his battered cover to move up to a console that looms ahead and with it hopefully a bunch of good shots. However, things don't seem to go that way for Jim. Two steps away from his cover he takes a direct hit from a blast and falls to the ground like a ton of bricks. He says silent and unmoving. As Jim goes down a yell can be heard from several in his squad, who begin to intensify their attack. AD-01 lurches slightly as the pirate suprises him with a bit of agility, ducking beneath the swinging fist. The droid bleeps an expletive, bringing the rifle up and attempting to barrel-punch the fellow, a gesture which more becomes a point-blank shot to the face. The droid turns back to the main body of pirates, turning the blaster back on full auto and laying down suppressive fire. A blaster bolt hits its torso, *pinging* off and impacting the ceiling, leaving little more than a stray black scorchmark on the thick durasteel. AD-01 suggests in a calm but loud voice. The last few moments of this firefight really went the way of the pirates, with not a single damned one of them being killed, while their own fire was concentrated enough to kill all but a pair of the surviving squad of Force Litigator, along with Gren and AD left standing, still. They begin to advance more openly, the man in the white flightsuit stepping out from behind cover, and walking with them, though he doesn't lower himself to shooting, not yet. Gren's on his feet now, blood seeping from the burn on his arm, though his armor absorbed most of it. The Captain cranks the action on his shotgun, working a flechette round into the chamber. "Droid. Grab the Sergeant, and get him out of here..." This is said in a hard voice, as it's apparent that they are going to have to fall back...A look over at the medics, and he shouts.."You two, drag that old man out of here...." Finally, he raises his shotgun, as he starts walking backwards toward the main corridor, and smiles, as he looks down the barrel. "I might not be able to make it slow, you son of a bitch, but I am going to kill you." With that, he squeezes the trigger. The medics succeed in getting the doctor and others to the relative safety of the corridor. The two remaining ESPOs continue to fire from cover but they don't take as many shots and they make sure to remain behind cover as much as possible. As the medics make it into the corridor the two ESPOs both retreat into the corridors decideing it is better to fight again later. AD-01 makes what could only be described as a sighing noise. It turns the blaster on the remarkably agile pirate once more, spraying him on full auto with the antique E-11 from less than a meter back. The droid walks backwards as easily at it does forward, continuing to lay down cover fire to protect the withdrawing forces. It releases the E-11's foregrip, the barrel red-hot. A hatch cycles open, dropping a grenade from the chassis into AD-01's waiting hand. The fuse is flicked on and with practiced timing only a droid chrono can calculate, AD hurls the fragmentation device down the hallway. The droid continues to pace backwards, still laying down cover fire and stooping only long enough to clutch the Sergeant's shirt and half drag, half carry him backwards along the hall to more cover. Gren cranks another shell into his shotgun, the Captain smiling, as he sees the leader of the White Death pirates thrown to the floor, his shoulder filled with shrapnel from the AA-8. But, he doesn't fire again, instead, he slips it back over his shoulder, and collects one of his blaster pistols, as he turns and hurries out of the bay, into the corridor, covered by the frag grenade of AD's, which happens to kill a pair of the pirates, including the bastard that had been causing the droid fits, with his agility. As soon as all of the ESPOs and Medics are out of the bay, Delede turns toward the open door, as blaster bolts slam into the ceiling around him, tosses a little wave to the wounded Pirate Leader that's getting to his feet, and shouting for his men to charge the one-eyed man, and the red droid that are still visible. But, it's too late, as Gren's smile grows...just before he levels his pistol at the door's control panel, firing a blast that lowers the emergency bulkhead, filling the hole made by the standard door that AD blew out. With their enemies out of sight, he clicks his commlink. "Bridge, this is the Captain. Drop the hangar's magnetic shielding." A few moments, and he snaps the fingers of his good hand. "Damn, I forgot about those techs, didn't I? Well, too late, now." A pity they can't hear the screams as their enemies succumb to explosive decompression.